Ibogaine: a natural miracle in neuroplasticity
Connection through Ibogaine, Part 2
Ibogaine is a plant-based medicine: an alkaloid with powerful detoxifying effects that cleanse bodily systems and psychoactive effects that produce heightened states of neuroplasticity. Historically, it’s been primarily harvested from the tabernanthe iboga plant, although new research shows that the alkaloid is also available from other plants, most notably the vocanga tree. Iboga is the primary sacrament in a spiritual tradition called Bwiti, the native practice among several West African indigenous peoples and pygmy tribes (mostly in Gabon).
Through my personal experience and the research I’ve been doing on behalf of the SeekHealing project, it’s clear that ibogaine is a beautiful and powerful medicine that can really help a person learn how to connect again. It can do that for an “addict” just as it can facilitate transformative growth in anyone trying to become a better human.
It’s also clear to me that ibogaine isn’t for everyone. There are many routes a human being can take to improving how they connect with their own body, with their community, and with nature. The mission of SeekHealing is to raise awareness about the existence of all these routes in an unbiased way, so that people who are trying to grow can figure out what works best for them — in an environment completely free of judgment.
There are also significant challenges to the widespread use of ibogaine for healing because there are major sustainability issues around cultivation of iboga from the tabernanthe shrub, which is native to Gabon. There are growing supply & demand issues, as well as an illegal poaching culture that threatens sustainable availability of the medicine. Please keep this in mind if you are seeking ibogaine treatment: do not buy from online sellers who procure the medicine through illegal means. If you are a farmer or an economist and would like to help in some way, please send us a DM!
Here’s some more information about the medicine itself and its effects on the human neurological and biological system. Unfortunately, due to legal restrictions in the US there hasn’t been the opportunity for much clinical research. The information below results from the few studies that have been done, and there are links to some more resources at the bottom of this post. Please send us a DM if you are looking for more information about ibogaine, or if you are an academic who’s interested in helping with research.
CHEMICAL NATURE:
Ibogaine is one of 12–16 alkaloid compounds present in the root and bark of the tabernanthe iboga shrub. The medicine is available as pure ibogaine HCL extract, but it’s also available as part of a Total Alkaloid (TA) compound that provides the full profile of tabernanthe iboga root chemistry.
MENTAL EFFECTS:
In high doses, ibogaine has:
- Oneirogenic effects: produces a waking dream state
- Perceptible psychoactive effects that facilitate a vivid hallucinogenic trip
BIOCHEMICAL EFFECTS:
- immediately halts withdrawal symptoms and the physical part of chemical addictions after one dose
- i.e. cessation of dope-sickness and opiate withdrawal symptoms (although uprooting the psychological symptoms of addiction require higher doses and more personal work)
- acts like a chemical reset button for your body
- has a wide range of antioxidant and antibiotic properties, even in small doses
PHYSICAL EFFECTS:
- ataxia, nausea, sweating, neurological tremors, insomnia, and light sensitivity are common side-effects while under the influence of the medicine
- medicine has stimulant properties that obligate medical pre-screening to ensure safe & healthy heart conditions
DOSING:
Different providers in the community have different views on which dosing strategies are most effective. To help someone get through heroin detox, it’s almost always necessary to administer a “flood” dose — a high enough dose of ibogaine for the body to react with ataxia and the oneirogenic “waking dream” state that requires you to lay down. However, low doses that don’t make you lay down and even micro-dosing over time appears to have similarly beneficial effects to the human body.
NEUROCHEMICAL EFFECTS:
- Triggers production of a protein called GDNF that human brains produce in early childhood to facilitate rapid generation of new neurons
- GDNF is why most children can learn languages, musical instruments and other skills so quickly in early development
- Triggers the natural release of nor-ibogaine in the human body
“NEUROCHEMICAL SECOND CHILDHOOD”
- For 3–6 months after an ibogaine flood dose, your GDNF levels are boosted again like when you were a kid.
- Allows for tangible remaking of habits and the ways that a person thinks and analyzes their environment
- Life-changing and transformative
- Allows for development and sustainability of new habits due to to heightened neuroplasticity
I think the psychoactive aspect of ibogaine is equally beneficial as the biochemical because it can kickstart self-reflection & spiritual growth. In my experience, my visions took me to the deepest and sometimes darkest parts of myself — to memories I haven’t thought about in years and that I didn’t want to think about. It provided a safe and loving space for me to confront and acknowledge my personal issues so that I could forgive, let go, change my coping strategy, and grow stronger. I’ll write more about my personal experience in my next post.
OTHER RESOURCES
Vice documentary — focuses on benefits for heroin detox:
http://www.vice.com/video/kicking-heroin-with-an-ibogaine-ceremony
Results of observational study of longterm efficacy of ibogaine-assisted treatment in opiate addiction:
http://www.maps.org/research-archive/presentations/Brown_GITA_Vancouver_Oct2012_iboga_comm_rev.pdf
Other reading material
https://www.ibogainealliance.org/ibogaine/therapy/detox/
https://erowid.org/chemicals/ibogaine/ibogaine_article3.shtml
https://www.pangeabiomedics.com/our-work/ibogaine
http://www.maps.org/research/ibogaine-therapy
